It's Argentina vs Spain in the FIFA World Cup final. But after seeing Argentina's rough and physical game against England in the semi-final, the Spanish team is getting a little worried.
The stage is set for the World Cup final between Argentina and Spain. However, Argentina played some very tough football in the first half of their semi-final against England. Their game was very physical, and this has left the Spanish camp quite concerned. In fact, Spain's defender Aymeric Laporte has said he hopes the referee will not let Argentina get away with playing a physical game.
So, what exactly is Spain worried about?
In an interview with a Spanish news outlet, Laporte said, "I have no problem with aggressive players as long as the referee does his job properly. It's true that in recent matches, we've seen some things that have really surprised us, especially in Argentina's game. In the name of tackling, they do things that shouldn't be allowed in a competition like this."
He added, "This kind of tackling is very frustrating. It breaks the flow of the game. It also becomes very difficult to keep your cool. It's one of the referee's main duties to make sure such situations don't happen. Even if one or two players play that physically, it can spoil the entire mood of the match. We have been playing clean and fair football from the start of the World Cup.
Our team doesn't step onto the field aiming to deliberately injure opponents or commit needless fouls. We want to stick to this principle. But it all depends on the referee. The game should be managed in a way that it's about football, and nothing else."
Laporte's special appeal to the referee
Speaking about Lionel Messi, Laporte said, “Messi is a legendary footballer. He's been a legend since I was a kid. We have watched almost all the videos of his game. He is an extraordinary footballer. We have been enjoying Messi's game for many years.”
